In 1970, a twenty-five-year-old college student named Denis Hyes did ___00___ that
almost made him the most important environmentalist of the century. He organized lectures,
workshops, and teach-ins, which ___21___ held on April 22, 1970. He called it Earth Day.
Approximately 20 million people participated in the event ___22___ the United States, and
it ___23___ by over 100 million people in over 100 countries with tree plantings, concerts,
TV documentaries, books, festivals, and even an expedition to climb Mount Everest
in order ___24___ garbage left by past expeditions.

The degradation of the environment was not new when the first Earth Day ___25___ place.
Writers and environmentalists had already brought it to the public’s ___26___ . But the first
Earth Days were effective in raising a ___27___ wider public understanding than ever
before.

Environmental issues are now on a global scale and all the problems could result
in the extinction of the human race. By the fortieth Earth Day, in 2010, we may know
the ___28___ of all these problems. Will changing people’s habits be harder than pulling
teeth? We all had better become environmentalists and use our votes and buying power to
___29___ changes. We must change our lifestyles. So far, people ___30___ enough respect to
their surroundings.

Part 1: Reality Shows (7 points)

‘Big Brother’ was probably the first of the new reality shows but the genre has developed.
Many are popular because they have a theme to them, but most are based on the idea
of the ‘survival of the fittest’ by eliminating participants as the series progresses.

So we have the dating shows where winners either make a couple or stay true to their
partners outside the TV studio. ___41___ There are lots of sports-based shows which have
led to contestants getting contracts to become professionals in the real world. There are
also similar shows based on music, in which the winners get to make a recording. ___42___
On a more personal level, we have programmes designed to show more extreme physical
and emotional reactions. In one series, participants have to face the thing that they are
most afraid of – being covered with scorpions for example, or climbing out of a window
twenty floors up in the air.

Critics say these programmes make people look silly and take advantage of people’s
weaknesses. ___43___ There are many reasons why. For the viewer it’s an opportunity
to ‘people watch’. It’s natural to like watching other people. They’re interesting. ___44___
We get to know the characters and see them grow and develop week after week, and,
of course, television is the perfect place to watch people. Like at the theatre or cinema,
we can look at other people and they can’t look back, but with television, we can watch in
the privacy of our own homes. ___45___

The TV companies like reality shows because they are cheap to produce and they attract
younger viewers. ___46___ The last ‘Big Brother’ in Britain attracted an enormous amount
of money from advertising. The shows don’t depend on ‘star’ actors with enormous salaries,
and the ‘actors’ won’t go on strike.

And why do people take part in them? Well, for fame and money of course. In the past,
appearing on television was not something ordinary people did. You had to be good at
something, like sport, or reading the news, or acting. Not any more. ___47___ We film births,
weddings, our child’s first steps. Nowadays it isn’t history if it isn’t filmed… and then put
on the internet.

A) However, people watch them.
B) There may be limits to what the public will watch.
C) Then there are those which test how good people are at specific jobs.
D) The video camera is an important part of many people’s lives.
E) We watch, but we don’t have to tell anyone about it.
F) This may lead to real success in the world of show business.
G) They are filmed while they are trying to find food and shelter.
H) Advertisers definitely like this.
I) We can imagine what we would do in their situation.
J) Now there are so many other shows around.

(a) The majority of teenagers in Britain are keen to work abroad but most of them
don‘t speak foreign languages. Government research figures show that 58 %
of 11 – 18 year olds in the UK have no foreign language skills, and therefore it is
difficult for them to enter the international labour market.

(b) Most British people are lazy when it comes to learning a foreign language. The main
argument they use is that foreigners make it too easy for British people because when
the British are abroad, everyone around speaks English to them. That’s definitely true.

(c) This fact is supported by figures out this week. The British Government found that
58 % of 11 – 18 year olds in the UK do not speak a second language. However, two
thirds of teenagers in Britain want to work abroad when they’re older – the countries
of their choice are Italy, Spain, France or China. The British Government admits there is
a problem. Not enough young people continue learning a second language when they
leave school.

(d) Teresa Tinley from the country’s national centre of languages says this problem does
not have positive effects on the economy: “We are in a competitive global market and
we need to be able to speak to our customers and our potential customers. Our trade is
very much directed towards English-speaking countries. Our research shows that our
exports are suffering.”

(e) The research is seen as further evidence that most young people believe they can
survive in a foreign country by speaking English – something the government in London
wants to change by introducing new measures to improve their foreign language skills.

48) British politicians want young people to learn foreign languages better.

A) True
B) False
Which of the paragraphs
supports your answer?

49) Good knowledge of a foreign language is not important for British business.

A) True
B) False
Which of the paragraphs
supports your answer?

50) It is difficult for British teenagers to find work in a foreign country.

A) True
B) False
Which of the paragraphs
supports your answer?

51) British people think that foreigners should speak English better.

A) True
B) False
Which of the paragraphs
supports your answer?

52) A lot of young British people keep studying a second language when they start work.

A) True
B) False
Which of the paragraphs
supports your answer?

53) Many British people are keen to learn a foreign language.

A) True
B) False
Which of the paragraphs
supports your answer?

Part 3: Disposable Products(7 points)

Those in the ‘green’ movement think it is very important that the choices of individual
consumers should change our society and make it more environmentally friendly. At the
moment in the world we throw away 15 billion ordinary batteries a year. Some of the
new types of rechargeable battery can be re-charged 1,000 times which should mean
1,000 times less rubbish going into the ground.

Disposable products, or ones which need replacing after a short period of use, have
become a feature of modern industry. In this way, the industries ensure that people continue
to buy their products. The life of a personal computer may be about 3 years on average.
People apparently change their mobile phones about twice as fast… every 16 months!
You might think that this explains why a lot of shops are still displaying shelves full of
single-use batteries, but rechargeable ones are harder to find. Certainly, statistics show
that if we spent less money on batteries and kept using other things a bit longer – our economies
would be smaller. Theoretically, you would expect unemployment to increase or wages
to go down. In reality though, if we improve the environment we should feel richer.

There comes a moment when even a rechargeable battery has to be thrown away.
My batteries were made of nickel-cadmium and there was a symbol on them clearly
saying you have to recycle them. You cannot just throw them in the rubbish bin. Cadmium
is a poisonous metal which accumulates in living things. Cadmium is also one of the many
dangerous things you take in with smoke if you smoke cigarettes.

If the batteries are recycled, then all of the cadmium can be recovered and used again for
making more batteries.

54) ________ batteries are those we regularly throw away. (1 word)

55) People change their ________ ________ more often than their computers. (2 words)

56) In shops it is not always difficult to buy ________ batteries. (1 word)

57) ________ is found in some batteries and in cigarettes. (1 word)

58) In general, people use their computers for about ________ ________ . (2 words)

59) The metal in some batteries is a ________ chemical and is a danger. (1 word)